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I taught this lesson to a student at an SCA practice recently. The student has been fencing around 6 months and has recently started taking classes with me. This is first time we’ve worked together in an individual lesson. My goal in the lesson was to reinforce some of the technical concepts we’ve been working on in class – hand positions, placement of parries, opposition, etc… as well as to introduce some tactical thoughts. I used actions 17 and 18 to demonstrate scenarios where it makes sense to parry vs counterattack in rapier, and to introduce the idea of controlling the timing of an opponent’s attack by provoking actions in tempo. My student did a great job of keeping up with this lesson, and now that I’m thinking back over it to write it down, I’m rather impressed with how much material we were able to cover: From invitation in third, straight thrust In time, as the instructor invites in third, straight thrust, then add mobility From invitation in fourth, straight thrust In time, as the instructor invites in fourth, straight thrust, then add mobility From the instructor’s engagement in third, disengagement As the instructor attempts to engage in third, disengagement, then add mobility As the instructor attempts to engage in fourth, disengagement, then add mobility Instructor’s choice between 6 and 7 From the student’s engagement in fourth, glide From the student’s engagement in third, parry fourth, riposte by glide As the student attempts to engage in third, parry fourth, […]

Two weeks ago in class, I taught a lesson on actions on the blade – these are attacks which make contact with the blade to remove it from its position in line either prior to, or during the attack. For instance, a glide begins with domination of the blade and progressively forces it further out of line during the attack, while a beat strikes the opponent’s blade to the side so that it is momentarily out of control (Capoferro describes both kind of actions as dominating the opponent’s blade). Last week’s group lesson was an exploration of some of the kinds of beats that can be used in rapier. We practiced: simple beats, false-edge beats, change beats, circular beats, and grazing beats. From the opponent’s invitation in third, straight thrust From the opponent’s invitation in fourth, straight thrust From the student’s engagement in fourth, glide From the student’s engagement in third, glide From the student’s engagement (third or fourth), change of engagement and glide From the student’s engagement (third or fourth), double change of engagement and glide From the student’s invitation third, simple beat in fourth and straight thrust From the student’s invitation in fourth, simple beat in third and straight thrust From the student’s invitation in fourth, false edge beat to the outside and cut inside cheek From the student’s invitation third, false edge beat to the inside and cut outside cheek From the student’s engagement in third, change beat in fourth (similar to a change of engagement, but […]

Last week in class, I gave an individual lesson based on the cutover (coupé). A cutover is a disengagement over the opponent’s blade, where you lift your blade and draw it back just enough to clear the opponent’s blade before extending to thrust. Done correctly, the entire action occurs in a single, continuous movement. Cutovers are relatively rare in rapier fencing (though Giganti does have a few examples), both, because the movement is much larger than a normal disengagement, as well as that drawing the blade backwards can be a good tempo for an opponent to attack. Nevertheless, they can be quite useful. The other reason that I wanted to focus on cutovers in this lesson was because Bondi di Mazo’s “Thrust below” reminded me a lot of the cutover to the low line that I was taught in foil. The cutover to the low line is one of the larger actions in Italian foil and is executed against an engagement in fourth. The weapon is drawn back, and in a circular movement, not unlike an ascending circular cut, the blade is brought back in line for a hit to the opponent’s flank below the arm. di Mazo describes an action where you feint an imbrocatta to your opponent’s face, and as he lifts his guard to pary, you make a thrust in second via a downward cutting angle, ending with your hand in first. Looking back over this, there may be less of a connection than I’d thought – it may […]

Among George Silver’s many gripes about the Italian fencing masters of his day was that “Wardes and Gripes, they have none”. Even if the masters did teach grappling, Silver argues, the weapon would be wholly unsuitable for them, “a childish toy wherwith a man can do nothing but thrust, nor that neither, by reason of the length” (Silver, 32). After all, what could one possibly be expected to do with a 40+ inch rapier when one closes? Silver’s condemnation displays more of a lack of imagination on his part than an innate flaw in the rapier, however. Disarms and hilt grappling were common in Destreza and are called movements of conclusion (Curtis). While earlier authors in the Italian tradition often included wrestling and grappling actions, they are relatively sparse in late sixteenth century Italian manuals. As this paper demonstrates, we should not assume that these actions were unused or forgotten, however. The famous Paduan fencing master, Salavtor Fabris (1544-1618), acknowledges the usefulness of grappling, but he describes it as belonging more to the realm of wrestling than to fencing. He says that he prefers to focus on “the proper defenses, the attacks, and in the advantage of the sword” than in coming to grips (Leoni, 14). Fabris’s seeming dismissal of wrestling techniques is at odds with the actual emphasis of his book, however. For someone who claims to feel his book would have been complete without a discussion of grappling and disarms, Fabris spends a considerable amount of time on […]

These are notes from a class that I taught a few years ago on how to go about reading source material and translating it to practical knowledge. Learning how to fence from a book is difficult. The class was meant to give an overview of the process of reconstructing a fencing system from a historical text. The process is divided into four parts: learning the techniques, understanding theory, training the system, and refining your interpretations. Learning the Techniques Read the entire book, several times. Develop a working interpretation of the mechanical details from the book You may need to import knowledge from other books or disciplines You won’t get it perfect. You can iterate on it as you understand the material better Fencing masters then disagreed then just as much as they do now. It’s more important to understand the problem that each was trying to solve and how their solutions address it then it is to try to figure out who was right or wrong. The basic movements serve as building blocks for putting together actions, but they are rarely spelled out in a text so they may need to be reverse-engineered. When reading a plate, it’s just as important to look at the actions of the fencer who was hit, as it is to look at the actions of the fencer who “won.” Example from Capoferro’s plate 7: “As the explanation of the following illustration, you (D) gain the blade of your opponent (C) to the inside. He performs a […]

This is the sixth and part of the Paschen Rapier Seminar I taught in New Mexico a few weeks ago. Read more about the seminar and parts one, two, three, four, and five. Pass in fourth to the inside line Pass in third to the outside high line Pass in second to the low line Engage in fourth, pass in fourth with a glide Engage in third, pass in third with a glide Against an engagement in fourth, pass to the inside line while yielding in second Against an engagement in third, pass to the outside line while yielding in fourth Against the opponent’s pass to the inside line, parry in fourth Against the opponent’s pass to the outside line, parry in third. Against the opponent’s pass to the low line, parry hanging second Against the opponent’s pass to the low line, parry hanging fourth Against the opponent’s pass to the low line, cross step back while parrying downwards and to the left with the off hand and counterattacking in fourth Against the opponent’s pass to the low line, cross step back while parrying under the sword arm with the off hand and counterattacking in second Feint high in second, elude a high parry of fourth and pass below Engage in fourth, feint by glide and disengage low in second with a pass Engage in fourth, transport to second and glide to the low line with a pass Engage in fourth, feint by glide and yield in second with a pass Engage in third, feint by […]

This is the fifth part of my Paschen Rapier Seminar. Read more about the seminar and parts one, two, three, and four. Feint by straight thrust to the outside high line and disengagement to the inside line Feint to the inside high line and disengagement to the outside line Feint with a high second and disengagement to the low line in second (eludes high parry of third) Feint to the left leg, disengage and hit in third (eludes parry of hanging fourth) Feint by glide in fourth and disengagement to the outside high line Feint by glide in third and disengagement to the inside high line Feint by glide in fourth and yield in second, hitting on the inside high line Feint by glide in third and yield in fourth, hitting on the outside high line. Part Six Share on Facebook

This is the fourth part of my Paschen Rapier Seminar. Read more about the seminar and part one, two, and three Student engages in hanging second, thrust in third to the inside high line by detachment Student engages in hanging second, partner frees blade and raises it. Student engages in third and glides Student performs #1 while making an advance with the engagement Student engages in hanging second with an advance. Partner frees blade and retreats. Student performs #2, making an advance with the engagement and then gliding with a lunge Partner’s choice between #3 and #4 As #5, but partner can continue to retreat, freeing their weapon from engagement with each retreat. The student alternates between engagements of hanging second and third until the partner stops, prompting the lunge. Student engages in hanging second, partner frees weapon and extends with the weapon high (higher than #2). Student lunges in second below the blade Student engages in second, partner leaves the tip near the student’s strong during the engagement. Student glides in second to the outside low line Student chooses between #1, #2, #7, and #8, based on the partner’s response to the initial engagement #6, but each time the student engages in hanging second, the partner could choose to prompt #7 and #8 as well. Part Five Share on Facebook

This is the third part of my Paschen Rapier Seminar. Read more about the seminar and part one and two. From the student’s invitation in third, parry fourth riposte by glide From the student’s invitation in third, parry fourth riposte by flanconnade in fourth From the student’s invitation in fourth, parry fourth, riposte by glide From the student’s invitation in third, parry hanging second, riposte by detachment in third From the student’s invitation in third, parry hanging fourth, riposte by glide From the student’s invitation in third, parry high fourth, riposte below by detachment From the student’s invitation in third, partner attacks either high or low. Student parries fourth (normal or high) and ripostes by glide, flanconnade, or below by detachment depending on the partner’s attack From the student’s invitation in fourth, parry high third, riposte below by detachment. From the student’s invitation in third, partner attacks either high or low. Student parries third (normal or high) and ripostes by glide or below by detachment From the student’s invitation in third, parry fourth with a half step forward, grab partner’s weapon at the strong and passes forward while pulling back and turning the sword so that the hilt hits the partner’s hilt and disarms them. From the student’s invitation in third, the student parries fourth, choosing to either close distance with the half step forward and disarm, or to maintain a wider distance and riposte by glide. From the student’s invitation in fourth, parry third with a half step forward, grab partner’s weapon […]

This is the second part of my Paschen Rapier Seminar. Read more about the seminar and part one here. Starting from the student’s invitation in third, beat in fourth and thrust direct Starting from the student’s invitation in fourth, beat in third and thrust direct From the partner’s engagement in third, attack with a disengagement As the partner attempts to beat in third, attack with a disengagement in tempo From the partner’s engagement in fourth, attack with a disengagement As the partner attempts to beat in fourth, attack with a disengagement in tempo Student engages in fourth, opponent frees weapon and invites in fourth. Student makes a straight thrust to the outside high line in tempo Student engages in third, opponent frees weapon and invites in third. Student makes a straight thrust to the inside high line in tempo From the partner’s engagement in fourth, student attacks by yielding in second to the inside high line From the partner’s engagement in second, student attacks by yielding in fourth to the outside high line Student engages in fourth and makes a half thrust by glide. The partner begins to parry fourth and the student finishes the thrust by yielding in second on the inside high line Student engages in third and makes a half thrust by glide. The partner begins to parry third and the student finishes the thrust by yielding in fourth on the outside high line Starting from the student’s engagement third, the partner frees their weapon and attempts […]